1. GOOD DISPENSING PRACTICES - SAFE
PRESCRIPTION & HANDLING PRACTICE
Presented by
SANJOY CHUNGKRANG
LECTURER
Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences
North East Frontier Technical University, Aalo, Arunachal Pradesh

2. DISPENSING
 Dispensing is a process of
preparing and providing prescribed
medications to patients.
 This can occur in various
healthcare settings, such as
pharmacies, hospitals, clinics, and
other medical facilities.
 Dispensing involves accurately
measuring and packaging the
prescribed medications according to
the healthcare provider's instructions
and the specific dosage requirements
for the patients.

3. GOOD DISPENSING PRACTICES
Good Dispensing Practice (GDP) refers to a set of guidelines and
standards designed to ensure the safe, accurate, and consistent
dispensing of medications and other healthcare products to
patients.
Key elements of Good Dispensing Practice include
 Accurate Prescription Handling
 Proper Medication Storage
 Labeling and Packaging
 Patient Counseling
 Safe Handling of Controlled Substances
 Hygiene and Cleanliness

4. VARIOUS ACTIVITIES INVOLVED IN
DISPENSING
Receiving and confirming order
Checking prescription and interpretation
Verifying and consulting if required
Removing medicines for issue and assembling
Billing and counter checking
Issuing medicines to the client with clear
instructions and counselling

5. DISPENSING MODULES
Prescription Counter
Waiting Area
Requirements of a good dispensing environment
Barriers, noise and distractions that can affect
dispensing.

6. DISPENSING ENVIRONMENT
Prescription counter
Ideally Prescription counter should:
 Be accessible to the patients.
 Preferably be separate and in a quite location. If there are
other separate section (e.g. cosmetics, general items, OTC
section), it should be slightly away form them.
 Be clean, orderly attractive, and with an identifying sign or
symbol, which can easily be identified and seen from others
parts of the pharmacy.
 Feedback mechanisms.

7. Dispensing Environment
Waiting area
An ideal waiting area provide:
 Comfortable chair/places to sit (at least for the
elderly/disabled/sick patient to rest).
 Current popular health magazines, and carefully selected
material related to good health to keep the client
busy/occupied, and prevent boredom while waiting to receive
medicines.
 Pamphlets, and posters related to public, family and other
individual health problems prominently displayed (as the
waiting area could be used as a health education centre).
 Maintain a high standard of cleanliness and hygiene
through regular cleaning and sanitizing.

8. REQUIREMENT OF A GOOD DISPENSING
ENVIRONMENT
The dispensing environment should:
 Be clean and organized space.
 Proper lighting.
 Temperature and humidity controlled.
 No loud music playing, talking or
television.
 Barcode Scanning and Verification.
 Medication Stock Rotation.
 Have medicines stored in an organized way on shelves.

9. SIGNIFICANCE OF GOOD DISPENSING
PRACTICE
 Patient Safety: The primary reason for adhering to GDP
is to ensure patient safety. Accurate dispensing reduces the
risk of medication errors, which can lead to harmful
consequences for patients, including adverse reactions,
ineffective treatment, or even life-threatening situations.
 Preventing Medication Errors: GDP practices help
minimize the occurrence of medication errors caused by
factors such as illegible prescriptions, incorrect dosing, drug
interactions, or misunderstanding patient instructions.

10. Effective Treatment: Properly dispensed medications are
essential for achieving the desired treatment outcomes. Incorrect
dosages, substitutions, or interactions can compromise the efficacy
of treatment, affecting patient recovery and well-being.
Professional Reputation: Healthcare institutions and
professionals are judged based on their commitment to patient
safety and quality of care. Adhering to GDP helps maintain a positive
reputation and fosters trust among patients and the broader
healthcare community.
 Minimizing Adverse Events: Accurate dispensing minimizes the
occurrence of adverse drug reactions, allergic responses, and other
unexpected effects that can arise from incorrect medications or
dosages.
SIGNIFICANCE OF GOOD DISPENSING
PRACTICE

11. Healthcare Costs: Medication errors and related adverse
events can lead to increased healthcare costs due to
hospitalizations, additional treatments, and prolonged patient care.
Patient Adherence: Clear instructions and patient counseling
during the dispensing process improve patients' understanding of
their medications, leading to better adherence to prescribed
regimens.
Ethical Responsibility: Healthcare professionals have an
ethical duty to provide safe and effective care to patients. Good
dispensing practices reflect this commitment to patient well-being.
SIGNIFICANCE OF GOOD DISPENSING
PRACTICE

12. SAFE PRESCRIPTION & HANDLING
PRACTICE
PRESCRIPTION :- It is a
written or electronic order
from registered medical
practitioner (Physician) to
directing the pharmacist to
dispense a specific
medication, along with
instructions for its use, to a
specific patient.

13. STEPS FOLLOWED IN HANDLING OF
PRESCRIPTION
RECEIVING
READING AND CHECKING
COLLECTING AND WEIGHING THE MATERIAL
COMPOUNDING, LABELLING AND PACKING

14. RECEIVING
Receiving the Prescription as clients come into the pharmacy,
they must be made to feel attended to and comfortable by:
 Friendly gestures
 A smile
 Eye-to-eye contact
 A friendly welcome
 Feeling of caring
Be confident

15. READING AND CHECKING
 Be alert and concentrate on the
prescription.
 Not engage in talking or chatting.
 Engage/ use his/her professional
experience in assessing the prescription.
 Any doubt, in case of prescribed drugs he/she should discuss
it with senior pharmacist or Physician.
 Because some drugs have almost same sounds Eg:- Aceclo
(Aceclofen) Vs Seclo (Omeprazole), Metlong (Metforming)
Vs Metlog (Metaprolol).

16. COLLECTING AND WEIGHING THE
MATERIAL
Before
compounding,
All the materials
collected
Left side of the
balance
After weighing,
materials
Shifted
Right side of
the balance
While
compounding,
label of the
stock bottle
Read carefully
To avoid any
error

17. COMPOUNDING, LABELLING AND
PACKAGING
Compounding Packaging Labelling
• Carried out in
neat and clean
place.
• Equipment-
cleaned and
dried
thoroughly
• Only one
preparation-
compounded at
a time
• Filled in a
suitable
container
• Container-
tightly
closed, free
from
microorgani
sm and
moisture
• Size of label
& container
• Direction to
the patient
• Mode of
administratio
n, direction
for use and
storage